


50 first dates AU

by Sueanoi



Category: Rockman X | Mega Man X
Genre: 50 First Dates AU, M/M, Post X5 bad end, XZeroWeek2020, romance/comedy/drama
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-27
Updated: 2020-09-15
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:33:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22925704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sueanoi/pseuds/Sueanoi
Summary: Post X5 bad end, X suffers a selective memory loss. Any memory of Zero is deleted every night after he recharge.Zero returns after the fact. and Zero doesn't know how to quit.
Relationships: X/Zero (Rockman)
Comments: 17
Kudos: 63





	1. Day 0

"Huh, I'm glad to see you're alive, X." Zero appeared from the rubble, his back turned to his most trusted friend " ...It is seems my reputation has been tainted...." 

The blue android, recently finished off an enemy, snapped his attention to the new comer. Eyes become hardened with caution. 

"...Who are you?" he asked.

Zero's heart dropped. He turned to face X, confusedly stared at his oldest friend, searching for an explanation. 

then he remembered.... the last time that they met ...they...

"...if you're referring to my state of mind, I am completely sane." Zero said, frowning in dissatisfaction with his lame answer, "...and I have no malice towards you." 

He walked a step towards his friend, who immediately pointed a buster at him, signaling him to stop the approach. 

Zero did as such, raising his hands in a surrender position.

X's eyes scanned through Zero from head to toe.

"Alia, this is X. Are you seeing this?" He spoke to his navigator without moving his position. 

"..."  
"Roger." He answered his navigator after the awkward silence,

"What is your relation with the Nightmare Phenomenon?" He continued his questioning. 

"....The what?" Zero was taken aback, "X, I am your friend. I have returned! That reploid was a counterfeited copy of me!" He exclaimed.

X raised an eyebrow.

"X," Zero called with a lowered voice, "...Don't you remember me?" He cautiously asked.

"We fought Sigma together," Zero continued, "We... we fought..." 

"...We... fought, because I threatened you...," Zero said, distressed, "X, if you don't trust me anymore, I deserve it. If this is payback, I deserve it! But I'm sorry. I'm really sorry!" 

X said nothing. His eyes full of question marks, not lowering his gaurd, he kept listening. Zero took a breath.

"I promise, I'm back to myself now." Zero continued "If you want nothing to do with me anymore I will leave... or if you want to arrest me... " Zero trailed his voice, 

"...I just don't want to fight you!" Zero finished. 

Green eyes became more softened, but his buster was still pointed. He put his other hand to his aural part, a gesture that he's calling someone.

"...Roger that" X answered his navigator, lowered his buster  
"Zero, is it?" He asked, and Zero nodded "I would like you to disarm and follow me for questioning." 

"I am disarmed." Zero confessed. A fact that he would never tell anyone but X. "I have lost my weapon a while ago..." 

...

The Maverick Hunter Head Quarters was as busy as ever,

On their side were a dozen of strange looks and gossips. Zero paid them no mind. 

X led Zero, handcuffed, into an interrogation room under his watch. He complied with the demand without any protest. 

Zero sat down.  
X didn't. 

Silence never bothered him before in his life. but this one minute was unbearable.

"Hey, X" He started "...I heard you... you know." 

X glanced at Zero.

"What you said... when I was..." Zero trailed off, discouraged by those compassionate eyes, but no recognition was shown.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what you're talking about." X answered calmly, "You must be confusing me with someone else." 

Before Zero was able to process that, a reddish pink reploid walked in.

"Zero... It's really you..." Alia acknowledged him, keeping a distance with X in between, "I couldn't believe what I was seeing in the monitor. Same as all of us." she sounded unsure.

"Alia..." Zero greeted his old workmate, unsure what to say next  
"...I'm back" he lamely finished.

"Alia?" X looked at them back and forth, "Do you know him?" 

"I do." She replied "...We'll talk about that later." she immediately stopped X from questioning, causing the blue hunter to close his mouth.

Zero noticed a presence; a tall, bulky reploid, lower-moderate fighting prowess, was approaching the interrogation room. 

It's Signas, the chief commander. He has entered. 

Alia and X glanced at the chief commander in acknowledgement, He nodded in return.

"May we have a private talk with him?" She asked X,  
X was taken aback.

"Is that really a good idea, Alia?" He asked his friend, "This reploid may be dangerous" 

"It's alright, X" Signas walked to stand beside Alia, hands behind his back "I'll be with her. Please stand guard in front of the interrogation room for us"

"...But..." X questioned his commander, "I don't understand. Is there such a confidential information that I cannot stand guard within the room?" 

Signas and Alia looked at each other, some kind of mutual understanding was exchanged. Alia looked down, Signas inhaled deeply.

"Yes." Signas replied, finality in his voice, "Unfortunately, X. I cannot let you hear us- -even with the risk, I am aware of it" Signas made a gesture to stop X from protesting. "I promise, all will be disclosed to you. For now, please do as ordered." 

"...Understood." X nodded, displeased but obedient

The elite hunter walked backwards to the door, eyes not leaving Zero even after he had already passed the sliding door. 

A lot of reploids whispering behind the door. Zero doesn't need to look up to recognize them as X's subordinates. They immediately stopped as their commander was in their hearing shot.

And the door shut in front of him. He stayed right outside.

"...X had become a lot more cautious since you left" Signas said, looking at X, strange emotion in his eyes, "It's almost like he doesn't lower his guard. He's no longer gullible as he used to be" the cheif commander looked back at Zero

"That's good for him." Zero commented, 

"Zero..." Alia began, one hand in her chest "You are... our Zero... right?" 

"I believe so," Zero answered the navigator, "It may be hard to believe... what I've done..." 

"...certainly justified a death sentence." Signas finished for him. "I'm glad to see you again, Zero, but how? and why did you return, after all this time?"

"I am aware of the consequence of my previous action, and I did hide away." Zero replied, 

"but someone is using my DNA." He continued, "Somehow, they've managed to get their hands on my signature code. It is extremely dangerous. You will need me, in one way or another. I cannot stand to stay in hiding." 

Both his 'interrogators' raised their eyebrows with surprise, 

"...And..." Zero longingly looked at the door, 

"...as for how I am functioning... I am not sure of the answer." he continued

Alia touched her chin, deep in thought 

"How do we know that we can trust you?" Signas asked 

"I remember everything-" Zero replied, but Signas gestured Zero to stop

"The maverick who threatened us also claimed to remember everything. Do you recall?" Signas pressed.

"... Yes..." Zero paused, deep in thought.

"...I chose to be here." Zero continued, "Commander Signas, I can escape at any time. You know me at least that well enough." 

Signas blinked once. 

"Not that I doubt you, Zero. but as commander, I cannot operate on trust." Signas said. "You will be required to undergo a deep scan immediately after." He commanded,

"The test result will be a positive." Zero announced. "There is no need to waste your time. However, I am now in complete control of my coding. I do not pose a risk as a transmittor." 

"That is hardly reassuring." Signas commented.

"It is precisely why my code is dangerous. And it has now fall into someone's hands" Zero pressed, "The Nightmare phenomena, as you call it, is the result of this abuse" 

"Would it be okay to just undergo it anyway?" Alia asked, "I would like to test for something else. Not just the fact that you carry a malicious code, but that you are not emitting it. If you would allow me, Zero"

Zero looked at Alia, he blinked once

"I am not aware that such test is possible." he replied, "I will undergo it, for your comfort." 

The two interrogators breathed in relief. 

"My turn." Zero started, the two reploids in the room perked in attention, "What happened to X?" 

It seemed to be an anticipated topic. Signas closed his eyes, Alia smiled sadly at him. 

"X suffers a selective memory loss" Signas revealed, looking directly at Zero once more, "Specifically, everything about you, Zero" 

Zero stared at the taller reploid in shock. His absurd suspicion confirmed.

"We have tried everything," Alia explained, "but he doesn't accept new information of you either. Other than that, he functions normally." 

"What have Sigma done to him..." Zero gritted his teeth, angry, blaming the only enemy powerful enough to pull such move that he can think of. 

"We don't know if it's Sigma."Alia said, "It's unlikely. There is no signature of his code in any scan that we performed on him. It might be a physical damage to his processor, but we do not detect that either."

Zero curled his hands into fists in distress, he stared at his handcuffs

"We didn't let him listen in because of this. I'm sorry, Zero." Signas finished. "...I know how close you two were."

Zero let his forehead fall onto his cuffed hands. 

"...No, you don't." Zero mumbled, "..Is there anything more I should know?" He asked,

"When we tried to tell him about you," Alia continued, "he forgot all about it the next morning after a recharge. We do not know the mechanics of it, yet. Because of the Nightmare Phenomenon, we did not have enough time to analyze it." 

"...and he's really stubborn" Signas said, "Even I cannot order him to sit still on a testing bed all day while there's a crisis, and he believes that can work just fine." 

Zero laughed through his nose, that sounded like X.

"We'll decide where to put you after the test result." Signas moved to the door, "Please follow us to the R&D unit, Zero." 

..

Day 0, evening

It was a positive as Zero said. 

The tall reploid mechanic in white and the shorter engineer in green was whispering among themselves as Zero was still inside their scanning capsule. 

His mind felt hollow. He had decided to come back out of hiding, the Nightmare phenomena was only one of the reason, but...

Does it matter anymore? The other reason to return...the real reason... he...

Alia wasn't sure if it was Sigma. It could very well be his fault. That last fight...neither of them held anything back.

X, I'm so sorry.

Curse you, creator.

"Dude, I still can't believe my eyes... "   
"...implications..."  
"...what does it mean?!..."   
"...monitoring.."  
"...what the frac?.."  
"...erase..."  
"...dangerous..."

He tuned out the whispering of his "allies". He didn't need their trust. It would be nice to have but it's not like he couldn't act on his own. He could independently go after the Nightmare Investigators and find out whoever was responsible. Heck, he could pose for the Nightmare copy and intimidate them into spilling the information...

There's a million ways to escape this building.

He didn't want to.

Two knocks on the capsule. Douglas was signaling him that the scan is finished. He gave Zero a thumbs up, then moved out of his visual field, probably to open the capsule.

Huh, liar. No need to sugarcoat the result. 

"My dude, Zero. eeeeehhhhhh" the engineer hesitated, "...how do I put this ... see here I uhh..." he's making many meaningless gestures.

"It was a positive, as you say." Lifesavior was less hesitant, "You do carry a malicious code. And it is located in such a way that it cannot be removed without losing your core coding." 

"Tell me something I don't know." Zero sighed , he was not impressed.

"The code is not active." Lifesavoir continued, "...We don't know what triggers it or how to keep it disabled, yet."

"I know that, too." Zero replied, annoyed, "This is a waste of time. I am aware of what is inside of me and I -" 

"Could we put a portable detector on you?" Douglas interrupted him with a very awkward smile, hands graps in a plea.

"!?" Zero gasped, "...You're joking."

"No I'm not," Douglas replied, "Signas wanna put you back to work as you request, but we gotta make sure the rest of us are gonna be safe from..."

Zero narrowed his eyes

"..sorry! i know it's invading your privacy but-"

"...To make that, you would need a copy of my code." Zero interrupted, "Do you know how dangerous that is?" 

"Eh?" Douglas was taken aback,

"I don't mind the dog tag." Zero continued, "I mind the fact that my code would need to be replicated. It would be in here, in this building, accessible to whoever. The security of this building is NOT enough." 

"...oh" Douglas recovered, "Is that what you're worried about?" 

"I'm here to put a stop to the abuse of my code, not to make it even worse." 

"You underestimate us" Lifesavior said, "We do have a secured lab with an isolated processing machine. Only those with the highest clearance are even informed of its existence. You code will be secured."

"...It better really be isolated." 

\---


	2. Day 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zero self-inspected, figuring out his place, and had a run-in with X later in the day.

Day 1

3:00 AM.

Humming noises of machinery filled his auditory senses. Dim blue light filled his visuals. Zero paid them no mind. He's in a diagnostic capsule, placed in this secret lab. Douglas had told him that he could go into sleep mode to pass the time, but rest escaped him.

He couldn’t enter sleep mode. Many thoughts were conflicting in his head, preventing him from turning off his alert state. An attempt to sort through the tangled data resulted in his memories becoming resurfaced into his active processor. The situation he’s in was not what he expected to be in and he started to question himself.

Why was he here?

For mankind? 

For himself?

For his old allies in the HQ?

For… X? 

Ah, this question used to be so simple to answer. His missions were why he was here. His origin was unknown, but it was irrelevant. It would be a lie to say that he never cared, but it was never important to him. Disturbing sometimes, perhaps, but he’s content with the purpose he was given. 

Then X came into his life, his existence became more interesting. X intrigued him. His vision intrigued him. Zero was tasked with teaching X combat. Consciously or no, X taught him humanity. X gave him a purpose that is far deeper than just following his missions.

And thus, he had no hesitation when Sigma defected. 

He was here for what was good. And it was taught to him by X.

Until Iris… her ideal world clashed with his. It cost her her life. He wasn’t sure of what good was anymore. That event seeded doubt in his mind.

Not long after, the missing pieces of his identity were recovered. He was completed, awakened. His origin had forced itself into his life and thus, It became relevant. It became his purpose in life. It was his destiny. It was why he was here. 

He’s happy. He’s high. He’s drunk with immense power that he never knew he had. Everything was clear to him. For the first time, he knew everything. His life up until then felt like a mockery of his true self. He might have been X’s friend and tutor, but never in his life that he felt so confident, so happy. He had found himself. He found the meaning of his life. He was here to fulfill his destiny, his calling, his own goal. 

In retrospect, it was the opposite. That feeling blinded him. It gave him tunnel vision. He wanted nothing more than to do the one thing that he was created to do, his single mission, the sole reason for his existence. 

X , poor him. He was clearly upset, but he did not hesitate to fight at all. He did not pull his punches even once. The fight was fierce and that Zero was proud of both himself and his foe.

Objective fulfilled. Mega Man X was defeated.

But his satisfaction only lasted for half a second, as X refused to go down without one last shot of Soul Body, incapacitating Zero on the spot. It felt almost like...he’s awakened once more, this time, sober.

Everything after that happened quickly. It was almost automatic that he jumped to protect X from harm. 

‘Ze... Zero... don't... leave…’

Even after what he had done,

‘Please... stand... by... me…’

Even after his betrayal, 

‘ ... I'll... protect... you... Zero…’

X still forgave him. 

He was baffled. X must have a cross wire or two in his processor from the battle. … or maybe, both of them did. 

Realization hit him harder than Sigma’s shot. He should never have let some dead old man’s wishes dictate his actions. After all, for some reason beyond his understanding, he was made to be just as free minded as X was. He was drowned in pure regret. X may not be as infallible as Zero used to think, but he didn’t deserve this. He should live.

Zero’s last words of apology fell on deaf ears, before he succumbed.

So, when he found himself somehow still functioning to his dismay, he ran and hid.

Ran away from his mistake and its consequences, from his life that he could never return to, from X, who trusted him unconditionally. Would he still, after everything?

Maybe, maybe not. And he deserved the distrust.

He didn’t deserve X. 

No purpose, no mission. He felt lost as he wandered. His physical strength slowly recovered back to its full power. Memories of his time spent with X kept playing in the back of his processor. He remembered all of his past, but none of them felt more important, more real than his friendship with X. Memory or no, his existence had always revolved around X. In happiness or misery. X never doubted him, never gave him anything less than absolute mutual trust that Zero could never find anywhere else. 

The news of Nightmare Phenomena reached him. Someone got a hold of a piece of him, abused it, made horrid creations out of it, threatening the world that they fought for. 

How could he be so careless... ! but then again, there was nothing he could do to have prevented that.

He had no doubt of X’s power. He could care for himself just fine. However… This should be his responsibility. He couldn't allow X to face that alone. He couldn’t stand it. He wanted to protect him, care for him, fight alongside him and be there for him like he had been for Zero even when it was never asked for.

And this was his own purpose.

This is why he’s here.

Here enduring this electrical prodding into the most private part of his processor. 

...

6:00 AM.

The humming machine silenced. The dim blue light extinguished. Zero was roused back to attention. 

"Bro, your code is a huuuuge labyrinth." Douglas turned to Zero’s direction, tapping on some buttons to free Zero from the capsule.

“Whoever your creator was, they were super paranoid of you getting analyzed by someone else.” Douglas continued talking as the capsule cover was raised. Zero rose up, looking at Douglas. He seemed ready to pass out.

"Signas sent for you, by the way.” He scratched his head, “Go with Lifesaver, I need a defrac..." 

The lower-powered engineer groggily stumbled away. Zero looked after his back, as he disappeared behind an automatic door. 

Unbelievable.

Zero, a maverick by name, was left to his devices in this lab full of sensitive equipment. The security measures exercised on him were alarmingly low. He glanced at the screen that Douglas spent the entire night blocking him from view.

“Scanning Zero code V3.1.0: 87.24%”  
“Sigma code V5.1.2: 82.78% (pending)” 

He looked away.

Zero walked to the other exit. The automatic door slid open. Lifesaver was standing there staring at him.

"Good morning, Zero" Lifesaver greeted him, "I trust that you had a good recharge?"

"Skip the pleasantries," Zero did NOT have a good recharge, "Just bring me to Signas.” 

"Fine. I know you're not one for small talk, so let's just get it over with." Lifesaver produced a pair of handcuffs, it opened expectedly. Zero eyed at the offending objects.

They were useless against him. Surely, Lifesaver must know.  
Zero said nothing and let himself be “bound”.

The medic turned his back on Zero, and led him down the hall, through the fire exit route to avoid the crowd.

Nothing was exchanged between the two. 

"We're here" Lifesaver announced to the camera at the front of the chief commander room. The door automatically opened.

“Thank you, Lifesaver.” a voice called out from inside the room, “Please leave us”.

"See you later, Zero." He gestured Zero to enter.

Zero walked in, the door closed behind his back. The room was brightly lit from both sunlight through glass windows, and fluorescent bulbs from the ceiling. Behind him was a cabinet full of books, external hard drives, and awards for his leadership.

"Thank you for coming to see me, Zero" Signas greeted him, “Please take a seat.” he gestured to the one in front of his desk. 

Zero walked towards said seat. Signas moved a working monitor away from his face so he can look at Zero directly. 

Zero sat down.

"I read Douglas's initial report" Signas got down to business immediately, "It is as you said. Quite troubling, I must admit."

“I was hoping you’d gain more information than that. Preferably something that I don’t yet know about myself.”

“Is there something else that you could tell us that may help with the analysis?” Signas asked more.

“Not yet. How much of my information is already unclassified?" Zero asked, 

“Publicly, you are still known as the heroic hunter who we have lost in action to save humanity from Eurasia fall. News of your return is known across the 17th Unit." Signas shrugged, "Only Alia, Douglas, Lifesaver and I are aware of your ... circumstances of departure." 

“I see.” 

“We have not announced your return yet, no one else is directly informed, but rumors will spread.” 

"Right" Zero hesitated, “And... what about… what about X?”

Signas took a pause, elbows on the desk, hands clasped, made an elaborate gesture of ventilation deeply. Zero braced himself. 

"X doesn't remember retrieving you yesterday." Signas sighed.

Zero froze… He grimaced, looked away. 

"Zero." Signas called him, clasped hands now on the desk as he leaned forward.

He didn’t react to the call.

"I'm terribly sorry." Signas said.

Zero grunted an acknowledgement. Signas patiently waited for Zero to recover. Zero looked like he was upset, and in deep thought.

“...What I am about to say must be absolutely classified.” Zero slowly said,

“You have my word.”

Zero silently thought some more. He’s calculating what would be useful, and what would be unnecessary. Some information was better left unknown, after all. 

“I was created with a goal in mind. Combat prowess was one of the main objectives.”

“...Go on.”

“Another objective...is enabled by the code that you found. Misuse it, and it has enough power to control all machines, possibly including reploids. We are fortunate that the thief has not figured out everything that it can do. It is bad now, but if we wait any longer, it will become worse.”

Signals stared at Zero, but he seemed to be finished with what he was going to tell. 

Zero will say no more about this matter.

“...I see.” Signas acknowledged, “Thank you for sharing that with us, Zero.”

“What’s your plan?”

"After you’re cleared from the scan, I will assign solo missions for you. It would take some burden off of X’s shoulders. The 0th unit already has a new leader so they will not be joining you. I will have to think about what to do about that later,

“As for X, he will still do his share of work with his unit. I know that you might want to support him directly, but considering the situation, it might be more harm than good.

“Of course.” 

“Thank you for agreeing to help us again, Zero. It is greatly appreciated. X is stretching himself thin. Coupling with his memory problem, he was having trouble keeping up. Although he never complained, we can see he’s struggling.” 

“That’s the exact reason that I returned.” Zero looked back at Signas, “How long is this going to take? I was hoping for a role more than just a sample donor." Zero said,

“As long as it must.” Signas gave him a non-answer. “How much do you know about the Nightmare phenomenon?” Signas asked.

“Other than what I’ve already told you yesterday? Nothing.” Zero answered.

“It causes reploids to detect things that do not exist. It alters all of their sensory systems so they cannot differentiate hallucination from reality. Also, their nanites would replicate the injuries that they were experiencing in their heads onto their physical body. Affected reploids can be destroyed by this process alone.” Signas explained.

Zero did not react other than a blink, prompting him to continue,

“There are sighting reports of you, or a discolored version of you, roaming around the areas where there are most cases of affected reploids. At first it was unclear if he was real, or was he a common hallucination pattern. Now it is known that he is the reploid who X retired before he ‘arrested’ you.”

“...”

“Take a short break from the scan while Douglas recharges. For now, please stay within the HQ building. You have free roam within this specific area.” Signas sent him a highlighted map of HQ, “I will arrange a new private room for you to stay. It should be ready by this evening.”

“Roger that.” Zero put the file away, he would look at it in a bit.

“You’re dismissed from today, unless you have any more questions?”

“....Signas, don’t you think your security measures are a little loose?” 

Signas raised his eyebrows.

“I noticed many instances where the security against me was utterly absent. Even now, not to mention that handcuffs are useless against me. I betrayed you, Signas. You should fear me more than this.”

"If you were to betray us again, Zero. You would already have done so yesterday.”

The reply stunned Zero.

“I admit that I trust you more than I probably should."

"That's a dangerous admission." Zero squinted,

"A maverick would not warn me of my stupid decision now, would they?" Singas laughed,

“For your sake, Signas. You better not treat any other captive like you did me.” Zero got up from his seat.

Signas just continued laughing.

\---

Day 1 , afternoon

1.45 PM

X had returned from his mission of the day. Exhausted both physically and emotionally. Yet another reploid he had to retire from negotiation failure. 

Had he ever been successful in ‘negotiation’? He couldn’t recall any.

“Welcome back, X” Alia turned her seat away from her navigator screen, attention on X, 

“Alia. Good to be back.” X nodded, warmly smiling at his navigator.

“You must be tired. Go get some rest, X. I’ll handle the report for you.”

“Do I look that bad?” X laughed. “You’re doing so much, Alia. I think you need a break more than I do.”

Alia shook her head, “Not at all.” she smiled, “Besides, Signas is currently preoccupied. I do have an issue to discuss with him later anyway. You can leave it to me. I could do both at the same time, no problem.”

X slowly wiped his face with his dirty hand, making it even dirtier than before.

“Thank you, Alia. I just… I don’t know how to thank you enough. Just, thank you.” He finished. 

\---

3.05 PM

Zero was sitting in the furthest corner of the Maverick Hunter Headquarters' cafeteria with an energy can on his table. To his surprise, this area was included in the highlighted area that Signas gave him. 

But the communal recharge capsule area was not. Not that he would use it. He didn’t feel comfortable powering down in a public area at this time anyway. 

He hoped that Signas would be quick with the new room. Apparently his old room was already reassigned. Of course, why would it not be? He was supposed to be retired after all. 

Oh? 

High energy levels slowly approaching. This signature reading… 

It’s X. 

Huh. He’s pretty quick with his mission today, it seemed. 

X was in the room then. He walked to the dispenser, tapped a few buttons, he grabbed 2 cans and just took a seat in the far corner from his perspective.

Did he see Zero and chose to ignore? Or did he not see him?

Zero observed his old partner. X leaned on the seat’s backrest, openly letting his exhaustion show. He opened his can, sipped the content inside. His eyes were looking far onto nothing. His chest was visibly ventilating slowly, but heavily.

Zero glanced around, there are a few and far between reploids in the area. They minded their business. Good. X needed the undisturbed time to recover from whatever he had dealt with earlier. Zero wondered how he had been, without him in the picture, without knowing that he ever had him in the picture.

X’s eyes moved to his direction. He put his energy can down and smiled at Zero. 

Oh, Zero was caught staring. He pretended to look another way, while still focusing his attention on X by the corner of his visual field. X looked at him for a few seconds before he refocused on his drink.

X downed his current cup in one go, put the empty container down, grabbed his full one, then he walked over to Zero’s corner.

“Hello, there. May I join you?” the blue android was standing next to his table now, smiling warmly.

Zero looked back at X, baffled. He did not expect X to approach him himself. 

“Yes.” He just dumbly replied.

“Thank you, what do I call you?” He sat down in the opposite seat. His smile never fading from his face.

“Zero.” bolts. Why did he say that?

“What an interesting name! May I ask where you’re from?”

“Uh…” Zero was not prepared for this, “I prefer to not say for now.”

“That’s ok.” X scratched his head, “Oh, where are my manners. I’m X, 17th Unit. A pleasure to meet you, Zero.”

“Yes, I know that.” 

“I’m sorry. I hope I’m not startling you. I was wondering if you’re a new recruit? I’ve never seen you before, With a striking unique build like you, you’d be recognizable anywhere. I’d like to greet and maybe get to know you.”

“I see.”

This felt familiar.

Almost like the first time they’ve met. 

Zero didn’t know how to feel.

“...Is this a bad time? I apologize for intruding out of nowhere. I would leave you to your thoughts if you’d prefer.” X looked a little disheartened at the awkward silence. He made a move to get up.

Zero put his hand forward, gesturing X to stop.

“No, no… Nothing like that. Please stay.” 

X smiled, relaxed, “I’m glad. I thought I'd scared off a new friend before we even started.” 

“Sorry for that.” That smile was contagious. “I just did not expect to see you so soon.” 

“You’re expecting me?” 

“Yes. I have wanted to see you, talk to you, ask you things. I have wondered how you’ve been.” 

“Hmm, what do you mean?” 

“I worry for you. This past few weeks had been quite rough, with the Nightmare Phenomena going on. I know that you are the most powerful hunter in the ranks right now, but it must have been weighing you down somewhat.”

X was speechless. He sipped his energy can, while his wide eyes were locked on Zero’s.

“...You ok?” 

X swallowed, put his can down, and wiped his lips with his right hand, “Ah, yes. Yes I am. That question was unexpected, that’s all.”

Zero sipped on his can.

“I am doing alright. Thank you for asking, Zero. I have a reliable unit and supporting team. Credit goes to them. This is just another crisis that we have to deal with on a regular basis. It’s not new to us.”

“I see. I’m glad to hear that.”

Zero looked at his energy can, in deep thought.

X observed him, “...doesn’t mean that it had been easy.” he said slowly with a waning smile.

Zero looked at X.

“...which is why I’m glad to see that you are joining us! Each and every one of the hunter personnel is a great help!” X suddenly smiled brighter,

Zero decided that the smile looked forced.

“May I ask something that might be personal?” Zero carefully asked

“Depends on the question.” 

“When you see me, what do I remind you of?” 

X tilted his head, raised his eyebrows, a gesture for curiosity.

“Please humor me.” Zero pressed.

X looked at Zero, his eyes scanned on Zero’s body, his head, his torso, the parts that are visible in his perspective. After a moment that felt like an eternity to Zero, he answered.

“The Sun.” 

Zero froze, his mouth hung open, eyes wide. 

“Why?” 

“It’s your physical appearance, and also… some unexplainable reasons.” 

Zero blinked, “I see.”

A ping in Zero’s head notified him that he had a message from Signas. He put his hand on his aural cone to signify that he’s reading a message. X looked at him patiently. 

His private room was ready. Douglas was awake and preparing the lab. His scanning was scheduled at 10 PM and he’s expected to be there at 9.50 PM. 

Zero put his hand down, not looking at X, “Thank you for that answer, X. I have to go.” He got up from his seat. 

“Thank you for talking to me, Zero. I hope to meet you again soon.” X gave him a warm smile. 

Zero felt an ache inside. He could not pinpoint the source of that feeling. Not understanding what was wrong, Zero downed the rest of his energy tank and left the table, leaving X sitting there to continue his can alone in peace.

Zero walked fast. He decided he would get a few hours of recharge in his new private room before the scanning time. It didn’t matter that he couldn’t pinpoint the source of his pain. A good power down would activate his auto repair. Everything would be fine when he woke up. 

Or at least, it should.


	3. Day 2

Day 2

4.05 AM

Zero used to appreciate the transparent tempered glass cover for these capsules, as they allowed the occupant to see their surroundings while they were relatively immobile.

Now he cursed it.

Douglas was powered down on top of Zero's scanning capsule. He was in an awkward position, causing his ventilation to be partially blocked. His system compensated by pulling air harder, making constant obnoxious loud noise.

In other words, Douglas was snoring on top of his capsule. Had been for the past 20 minutes.

He’s so loud that the electrical prodding in his head wasn’t even bothering him anymore. 

This won’t slow down the scanning process, as Douglas had already made a preset so the system could run automatically. The engineer had been working intensely since yesterday afternoon. He must really have been exhausted. He felt bad for Douglas.

But he felt worse for himself.

“Douglas.” Zero called,

No response. 

“Douglas!” Zero tried again,

Again, no response.

He would knock the tempered glass, but due to the narrow space inside and the delicate connection probes on himself, Zero was technically immobile. He could not move anything without risk of losing precious information, prolonging his scanning time. And he couldn’t have that.

Zero tried the radio, but he found that he couldn’t connect to any channel.   
Ah, this was an isolated laboratory. Of course he’s in radio silence.   
This was a good sign that this room really was isolated. That’s good.

The down side? 

Zero’s trapped.

The snoring continues.

\---

6.10 AM

“Ahhh! I’m sorry, dude!” Douglas was awake.

“...s fine.” s not fine.

“Oh bolts and nuts. What’s wrong with me?” Douglas was typing super fast on the control panel. Zero couldn’t make out what he was typing.

“You really should get your ventilation checked. It sounded like you have a partial blockade.” Zero replied to that rhetorical question.

“Really?” Douglas stopped typing, looking at Zero.

“Yeah.”

Douglas groaned, he put his face in both his hands.

“That would explain the poor defrac efficiency I’ve been having lately. I thought it was just stress.” Douglas said through the hands.

“Wait, you’re unaware of this?” Zero raised his eyebrows, “Get your diagnostics checked too when you’re at it.”

“Yeah yeah I will.” Douglas wiped his face downwards, then continued typing on his control panel.

“Are you sure you’re up for the job?” Zero squints.

“Look, dude.” Douglas stopped typing again, “The only people who have clearance to your information are Signas, Alia, Lifesaver, and me.” He counted on his fingers as he mentioned each name. 

“Signas is the chief commander so he’s out. Alia is the lead navigator AND the sole R&D for X’s armors so she’s already overworked. Lifesaver is taking care of the entire maverick hunter’s reploids with his team, but only he himself was taking care of X, you know, in the head, so he’s overworked, too.” 

“That leaves only me.” Douglas pointed at himself with his thumb, “I’m the only one who can spare some time to take care of you cuz my understudy is capable enough to lead the mechanic department in my absence.” 

“I see.” 

Two knocks were heard at the door.

“S’cuse me” Douglas got up from his seat, walked to the door. It opened, revealing that it’s Lifesaver. Douglas walked out to join him, leaving Zero in the room alone.

Zero closed his eyes. Finally, he could hear himself think again. 

Zero wondered what he’s going to do today. Douglas was at his limit, so he would have to take a break very soon. Zero wouldn’t need a recharge for a while longer. The schedule would probably repeat. He would report to Signas, granted free roam, whatever. 

What would X be doing right about now?

That ache in his chest came back again. It had disappeared last night and he forgot about it for a while, he thought the auto-repair took care of it. He might have to mention it to Lifesaver if it repeated. 

No. He had to evaluate Lifesaver’s trustworthiness. He survived alone with half a body. He could get over this by himself too.

The door opened, Douglas came back into the room. Zero opened his eyes to look at the engineer.

“A message for you, Zero. Signas will be preoccupied for a few hours more this morning. He said to send you to him at about 10 AM.” Douglas sat back on his chair, typing on his control panel once more.

“Huh.” 

“Say, dude. Were you with X yesterday?” 

“...Why?”

“Eh. I’ll let Signas talk to you about that.” 

Zero looked at Douglas, curious, but Douglas said nothing as he continued his analysis work.

And the room was only filled with typing noises.

\---

9.34 AM

“Ahhhh!” Douglas leaned on his seat’s backrest, overextending his back so he’s looking at the ceiling , “I’m so close, dude. I’m so close. I can’t. It’s too much.”

“Hmm.” Zero grunted an acknowledgement.

The engineer pressed some buttons at Zero’s scanning capsule. The cap opened, freeing Zero for the day. He rose up from his confinement.

“I think I’m getting a glimpse of what your secret code is meant to do.” Douglas gripped his forehead in frustration, “Zero, do you know who the heck your creator was? What’s his intent?”

“Yes, I do.” Zero looked at him, “His intent was to create the most powerful robot of his time.” 

Douglas squinted at Zero.

Zero squinted right back.

“Okay wise guy. You know what my actual question was. You dodged that one.” Douglas pointed at Zero.

“No, I didn’t.”

“Who was he, Zero!?” Douglas yelled.

“Irrelevant to our issue. I will not share it.” 

“Sure, sure.” 

Zero stepped out of the capsule silently.

“You know what? I’m already info overloaded anyway. Maybe it’s a good idea that you don’t tell me yet. I’m gonna go get some defrac and recharge.”

Zero’s eyes followed Douglas as he stumbled into that small room once again.

“...AND!” He turned around pointing at Zero, “I’ll get my ventilation checked RIGHT AFTER!” The door closed as he turned back and left.

Again with this situation. Zero was left alone in the lab with the monitor turned on. 

Zero decided to not take a peek this time. He stepped out of the lab, there was no Lifesaver to handcuff him. So he just walked slowly on his way to Signas’ room.

\---

10.00 AM.

Zero arrived at the front of Signas’ room. He pressed a button on the door, a red LED lit up.  
“Signas, I’m here.” He spoke to the microphone next to the LED.

“Please come in, Zero.” Signas’ voice was heard from the speaker. The door automatically opened. Zero stepped in.

The door closed behind him. 

“Please take a seat.” Signas gestured to the seat in front of his desk, as usual. 

Zero did as requested.

“How’s the room?” Signas smiled at him, as he moved his working monitor away from his face.

“It’s adequate.” 

“Good. I’m glad to hear that.” Signas grabbed a handheld transparent tablet, he looked at its monitor, “Douglas’s report for today included a hypothesis of how this code can be used. Strangely, so much of it looked gibberish. Such a contradiction for a code so powerful. Do you have any explanations for that?” 

He put the tablet down, flipped it upside down, and pushed it so Zero could see. 

Zero only glanced at the tablet.

“It was perfectly made for the machine population of an era long past.” Zero crossed his arms, “Attempt to use it on reploids directly, and the result would be what you dubbed The Nightmare phenomena.” 

“So you’re saying that,” Signas leaned forward, “they can use it to control reploids, but only if the code was modified successfully, ”

“En masse. It was for remote machine control en masse.”

Signas did not react.

“You know I have no intention to ever use the code to its full potential.” Zero crossed his arms.

“Of course.”

“I’m not proud of my origin. I trust that you would keep it confidential to the highest degree.”

“That is granted. Although, I have to ask that some of the useful info be shared to Douglas, and eventually Alia and Lifesaver, with your permission prior, of course.” Signas leaned back, “Still, you have to admit that you are a masterpiece. Your creator was a brilliant mind.” He gestured to Zero with his open palm.

“Screw my creator. He wasn’t sane.” Zero squinted.

Signas laughed. “Well, without him, we wouldn’t have you in the picture! Where would we be without you?”

“...Sigma would still be sane.”

The two fell silent.

“...You don’t know that.” Signas tried to break the silence, “Nevertheless, I’m still glad to have you back. Zero. You are more than just our most powerful ally, but you’re our friend as well. I hope that you understand how much it means to us.”

Zero did not answer.

“Speaking of friendship.” Signas clasped his hands on the desk, adjusted his posture to a more relaxed one, “How was your evening with X?”

Zero’s eyes widen.

“I talked to him earlier this morning.” Signas laughed, “He seemed more energetic than usual.”

“Does he remember..?”

“No, he doesn’t. In fact, he couldn’t explain what made him feel that way.” Signas scratched his chin, “He did say that he remembered going to recharge feeling hopeful about something he couldn’t put his fingers on.” 

Zero just stared at Signas. 

“I simply put two and two together.” Signas laughed.

“That means there is an effect.” Zero was excited, “I left a mark. I’m not completely gone from his mind!” 

“So you did meet.” Signas smiled.

“I didn’t intend to meet him, actually.” Zero admitted, “He thought I was a new recruit, and he …”

Zero spaced off.

“I see. So he started it”

“He did.”

“Sounds like him.” 

“Indeed.” 

“This gives me hope, Zero. I wonder if this is a sign that he might be recovering.”

Zero didn’t answer.

“That doesn’t mean I’m going to let you two work together just yet. X still forgets you. And we cannot afford our main hunter forgetting about his work.” 

“Of course.”

“Douglas requested to take a break from scanning you tonight. He wants to analyze the data that he already extracted from your processor. So tonight you’re free.”

“Huh.”

“That would be all. You’re dismissed for today, unless you have any more questions?”

“Yes, how’s the mission going?” 

“Somehow, I knew you’d ask about that.” Signas looked at one of his monitors that he had moved from his desk, “We’ve investigated the Amazon. Turned out, Commander Yammark, one of Isooc’s lead investigators, turned maverick on us. He attacked X unprompted, so X had to defeat him.” 

“That’s yesterday?” 

“Yes. Interestingly, Alia reported that he was a destroyed reploid from a long time ago. It might be a coincidence. Reploids from the same model can look similar, after all. I need more time to investigate the issue.”

“I see.” Zero paused, in deep thought. “Thank you for telling me, Signas. I’ll take my leave.” Zero rose from his seat.

“Where will you go today?”

“Navigation room. I want to talk to Alia if she’s able.”

“An idea of what’s going on, perhaps?”

“No, but I have a feeling there’s something deeper.” Zero turned his back on Signas, “And other topics, too.”

Signas made an open palm gesture, “By all means.”

Zero quickly walked out of the chief commander room. The automatic door closed behind him.

“...‘A feeling’, hmm?” Signas spoke to no one.

\---

13.10 PM

Zero walked to the front of the Navigation room with 2 energy cans. The door automatically opened for him.

Huh, he did not expect that clearance. He will take the convenience without complaint, however.

Alia was at her desk, staring at her multiple screens. She pressed a button that Zero assumed to be the mute button. 

“Hello, Zero. Signas informed me that you’re coming.” She glanced at Zero, paying minimal attention to him as she’s still on duty, “Is there something I can help you with?” Her eyes returned to the monitors.

“It can wait until you’re finished with your duty.” Zero put one energy can on Alia’s desk. “This one is for you.”

“Oh? Thank you, Zero.” Alia replied, surprised, “What’s the occasion?” She smiled as she opened the can immediately.

“I heard that you’re overworked.” Zero sat down on a vacant seat, “And I’m about to ask you for your time after duty. I hope that this is adequate.”

Alia drank half the content in one go, put the can down, and sighed.

“I would gladly help you even without the energy can, Zero.” She said with a smile, “Although, I’m afraid I’m mostly booked today. I have to go to R&D with X tonight. And I haven’t had any defrac for the second day now. I kind of really need it.”

“That’s fine. When would you be available?”

“If you’re in a hurry, immediately after this mission we should have a few minutes. Otherwise, tomorrow I should have more free hours.”

“Is that X?” Zero took a peek at the monitor.

“Yes.” Alia darted her eyes across other screens. “You could hang out here while you wait for me if you have nowhere to go.” She suggested. Just then, Zero heard X’s muffled voice calling for Alia from her headset. “Excuse me, Zero.” She pressed the mute button once again, resuming audio exchange with the hunter under her care.

Zero nodded, he put the other energy can down on an empty space on Alia’s desk, away from her working space. He silently watched her work with impressive accuracy, precision, and thoroughness. Her eyes were sharp. Her plans were strategic, personalized to suit X’s action style. 

This is not something that every bot can do. She was worthy of her position as the lead navigator.

Zero listened in on X’s replies that echoed out from Alia’s headset. He observed X’s action through the monitors. X looked confident. His commands were loud and clear. His movements were swift and purposeful. His shots were straight and true, but no more than necessary. 

He had become every bit a great commander. Not often that Zero would have the opportunity to watch him work from a wide angle view. Reminiscing the times when he trained him as a novice hunter, pride swelled in his chest. 

As if he ever ever had any doubt.

\---

15.35 PM

The unintended fight was over. X requested his return as Alia keyed in the coordinates for transport. The transport unit was notified, they were sent to pick up X and his unit at a rendezvous point. 

“Now we have some time before he reaches here.” Alia turned her seat around to face Zero, “What can I help you with, Zero?”

“Many things.” Zero looked at her, “Firstly, could you tell me more about X’s ‘condition’?”

“Any specifics?”

“Just give me the general info for now.”

Alia took a sip from her energy can, “I think the person who could best answer you would be Lifesaver, but I will tell you what I can.

“Immediately after your last battle with Sigma, we dispatched a rescue team, expecting to see you both in pieces. To our surprise, X walked out of the scene to meet us in a confused state.”

She took another sip, “Confused, but physically unscathed. It was almost like he was a new android. The rescue team reported he lost consciousness soon after they met, and you were nowhere to be found so they brought him back in that powered-down state. Lifesaver scanned him. He confirmed that this was, indeed, X, but found no physical damage that he could fix. 

“He woke up with his memories… defected. He remembers pre-reploid times, Dr.Cain, Sigma, myself, and the rest of his team, but he couldn’t remember you, or any event that has you in it.

“We thought he’d get better in time, but it kept getting worse. He started to recall the missing events, but they were warped to exclude you. We tried to tell him about you, but his reactions were disbelief. What’s worse, he would forget that we ever told him anything the morning after. We have made some tests, it appears that his information loss happens after he powers down to recharge and defrac. We did try to scan him under maintenance, but we couldn’t pinpoint any activity in his processor that would cause this.”

Zero sat still, listening intensely to every word.

“According to Lifesaver, he still had some more test plans to try out, but… this crisis happened and… X proved himself that he was capable. He refused to sit still while the rest of the hunters were on duty. So, the plan was dropped, and here we are.”

“Have you pinpointed what exactly about me that his ‘conditions’ react to?” Zero held his chin

“Hm… your name, probably?”

“My name…?” 

“Yes, I have heard that you met him yesterday. So you’ve talked to him twice in total. I really was hoping that there would be a difference between being told about you, and meeting you. I hoped he’d kept some memories of the actual you, but no. he lost it all. Twice now. We were talking about this this morning. I wonder what will happen if you don’t tell him you’re Zero.” Alia finished her energy can.

“You want me to…lie to him?”

“You can never know. It might just work.” 

“I... will think about it.” Zero slowly replied.

A ping was heard from a far side in their room. Both Zero and Alia looked to the direction of the transport pad. On que, the pad lit up, signifying that it was functioning. Blue light appeared, and it formed into X. 

The weary unit commander stepped out of the transport pad. He walked with a limp.

“I am back, Alia.” X looked up, saw the red android sitting next to his navigator, “Oh, who’s your friend?” He smiled.

“Ze-” 

Alia kicked his leg under the desk. Zero snapped his eyes at her, offended. She blinked rapidly. 

She kicked him! 

She kicked! him! Does she not know who she’s dealing with?

Of course she does. That’s why she did it. 

Zero stared at her. She’s shaking her head as subtly as she could. Was Alia trying to stop him from saying his name? All this awkward non-verbal signaling reminded Zero that he had not renewed their direct radio permission since his return. 

“Ze?” X asked again, oh no. he’s still here.

“Ze….bra.” he lamely finished. 

Alia put her face in her hand.

X looked at them back and forth, “Am I missing something?”

“Oh, no no, X. You’re fine.” Alia waved her hands dismissively, “X, this is my friend, Zebra. He’s been here waiting for you.” She laughed, 

“As the matter of fact, I am.” Zero took the other energy can that he brought and gave it to X, “Here, you look terrible.”

“Thank...you…?” X accepted the gift, baffled, but quickly recovered, “Thank you, Zebra. Nice to meet you!” X looked at him from head to toe. “I’d like to take this to sit down somewhere to refuel. Would you like to join me?” 

“Yes.” Zero replied.

“I’ll come back to do my report in a bit, Alia”

“Take your time, X. I’ll handle the report -”

“Oh no, Alia. Not this time. I can’t have you do that for me everyday now, can I?” 

“I already refueled. Our kind friend brought me an energy can as well.” Alia shrugged, gestured her eyes to Zero, “but I think you should hit the cafeteria anyway. Get doubles, or triples. You do indeed look terrible, X.”

“Alia.” He gave her a disapproving look.

“What?” She feigned an innocence in her voice, shrugging.

“Zebra, help me.” X looked at Zero, gesturing an open palm at Alia, Laughter in his voice.

“I will do the report.” Zero looked at Alia, finality in his voice.

“Eh?” Alia and X exclaimed in unison, surprised.

“I will be free tonight. You have more important tasks to do.” Zero then looked at X, “And you have self maintenance to do.”

“Zebra, what...you don’t need to..” X’s voice sounded small. 

“I want to.” Zero replied simply. 

X’s wide eyes looking at Zero in awe. His mouth slightly opened but no words came out of it.

Zero looked at Alia, “I would still need you to do the parts I wasn’t here to see.”

Alia nodded with a smile, “Thank you…”

She sent him a permission request for direct radio communication. Zero promptly accepted.

‘I’ll have it ready by 1900 hour… Please take care of him, Zero.’ Alia radioed him.

Zero nodded in confirmation. He took X’s arm.

“Let’s go, X.” Zero pulled X towards the door. 

“Eh? Zebra Waiiiit!” X, despite the confusion, allowed himself to be pulled. He staggered to the direction that Zero was pulling him. And both of them disappeared behind the door.

And Alia was left alone in the room. Once X’s mocking distressed voice was out of her hearing, she turned her seat around to her desk, and started typing.

\---

16.00

Zero and X walked to the same old cafeteria. As they entered the room, Zero’s scanning subroutine reported to him that there were four generic reploids in the vicinity. Zero recognized their signature as 17th unit members, X’s subordinates. They must have also got off their mission along with X, he guessed. He never bothered to remember their names. They spotted the pair, and they started to whisper among themselves. Zero paid them no mind.

X spotted them, too. He smiled and waved politely to them. 

The one reploid who started the whispering immediately stopped their action and made a salute gesture, causing all others to do the same. 

X nodded an acknowledgement. 

“They are members of the 17th unit.” X said to Zero quietly, “Nice folks.”

Zero didn’t care at all. His attention was all on X’s smile. 

For a moment, a wave of familiarity washed over him. It was almost like he never left. X getting distracted from him to casually greet his subordinates was such a normal sight that Zero used to see, 

X was so kind. He didn’t deserve to suffer. He didn’t deserve...

“Zebra?” X tilted his head at Zero.

“Hm?” Zero was roused back to reality.

“You kinda spaced out on me. You okay?” X’s expression was full of concern.

“Yes. Let’s find a seat.” Zero just walked forward, 

They ended up at a cornered space, where they could get some privacy. Obviously, all the seats within this room would still be in the earshot of the 17th unit group. They were purposefully lingering around, Zero suspected.

Not that Zero minded them. According to Signas, 17th unit members are already informed of his return. And they also knew of X’s condition, first hand. So what would they be curious about?

Zero got himself a can, and X, another extra can. 

X opened his first can, “So, you’re Alia’s friend?” He took a sip.

“Yes.” yours too. “Yes, I am.” Zero opened his can as well, staring at X.

“I’m so glad to know that she has friends outside of her work space. She’s been working tirelessly for weeks. I feel so bad for her.” X whirled his can around, as if to mix the content in his energy can, “She shouldn’t have to work so much, you know? But I suspect she might be a work-o-holic.” 

Zero huffed a laugh, he leaned back, pointing X the hand that’ “Same to you. Buddy.” 

X raised his eyebrows.

“You work more than anyone.” Zero continued, “In fact, you are pushing through your limit and yet, you give all the credits to your peers. You are the true work-o-holic, here.”

“Aw, it’s not that bad. I’m doing just fine.” X’s smile looked nervous.

“Let your friends help you, X. They love you. You should be kinder to yourself.” Zero got quieter, “You got it rough today, I saw.”

X cringed a little bit as he looked to the side, “...I wished it could have ended differently.” He scratched his helmet, “I’m not sure if that was something you should have seen. Then again, I have a feeling that you might be no stranger to such a sight. May I ask what you do?”

“Soon to be a hunter,” Zero technically did not lie, “but I have had experiences before.” 

“Oh? What kind of experiences?” 

“Combat experiences.” yet another non-lie. “The specifics does not matter.”

“Mysterious.” X smiled coyly.

Zero huffed a laugh,

“You’ll know me soon enough.” Zero spoke with more confidence than what he felt, as if to convince himself more than X. “I have had my fair share of a negotiation that ended badly. I understand how you feel. And for that, despite you being the victor, I am sorry for that outcome of a battle.” 

“I don’t feel like the victor at all.” X confessed, gripping his energy can with both his hands. “Turtloid didn’t deserve that fate.”

“I know.” Zero reached his hand to hold X’s. The grip loosened, as X looked up to see Zero’s eyes, “He made his choice, X. That was out of your control.” 

X just stared at Zero.

“Your goal is to end this crisis. Don’t lose sight of it.” Zero continued. “ You did fine. And I know that you will continue to do fine.”

After a few ventilation cycles of X just staring at Zero, he looked down with a slight smile.

“Thank you, Zebra.” 

They drank their respective fuel in peace for a moment that felt both like forever, and a blink of time all at once. 

“X, may I ask something that might be weird?” Zero broke the silence after he finished his can. 

“Yes?”

“How good are you at math?” 

“Math?”

“I’m just curious. Please humor me.”

“Sure. I’m probably as good as every other bot?” X looked confused, “Why?”

“What’s five minus five?”

“Uh... Zero?” 

Zero stared at X’s eyes with an unreadable expression. He felt the pain in his chest again. Regardless. This meant Alia’s hypothesis on his name being the factor of X’s processor problem was probably false. 

The word itself still existed in his mind. Despite it being in a different context, the fact that he can still access the word meant that it must be more than just his name. X’s condition wasn’t so simple.

Zero found it hard to believe that this was a result of an accidental injury.

“Thank you for answering.” Zero looked down.

“What was that about?”

“I was testing something. Sorry. I cannot tell you.” 

“Oh come on. Now you’ve got me curious.” 

“I think it’s time for you to get cleaned up and get some rest.” 

“What do you mean?” X laughed

“I know you’ve got more stuff to do later, so now that I’ve freed your hours by taking your paperwork, you should take it to get some rest.”

“Seriously, Zebra. You really don’t have to do it for me. I’m-”

“I don’t, but I have nothing to do. I’m super bored and you’re super tired. I insist, my friend.”

“....Okay. Thank you, Zebra.”

They walked past the seats where X’s units were still sitting. They stared at the pair with no attempt to hide their bewilderment. X politely smiled and waved at them like always, while Zero paid them no mind. 

Zero turned to X at the door. “See you in the evening.”

“Yeah. See you later, Zebra.” 

And they parted ways. 

Zero had to hurry back to his room to get a quick recharge. He wanted to take care of that pain before the appointment with Alia. Why is it that it kept returning? He walked fast, disregarding all of the reploids’ bewildered eyes along his way.

\---

19.00

Zero woke up in his private room. Partially charged, but it was enough. The pain he felt already subsided. He ran self-diagnostics. It showed all green. 

Ironic. He told Douglas to get one, but he might be the one who needed his diagnostics checked himself.

He really didn’t want to be vulnerable to Lifesaver. Maybe he would ask Douglas for a quick check the next night. 

Zero noticed that Alia had already given him a message. It’s the report’s draft.   
Satisfied that Alia didn’t go ahead and finish it. He contacted Alia by radio.

A few seconds later, she picked up. 

“Good evening, Zero. Have you got the file I sent you?”

“Yes, I’ll get to it in a bit. Is he with you?”

“Not yet. What is it, Zero?”

“I’ve tried to test a little bit with X’s memory issue, regarding my name.” Zero got up from his capsule “He can recall my name in the context of mathematics. The trigger for memory loss is probably not my name.”

“Zero, did you ask X to calculate a math problem so he would say your name?”

“Yes.”

“You’re onto something, but I think you might have made a mistake. If you want to experiment with the word ‘zero’ as the factor, you have to control everything else that might affect the outcome.” 

“Such as?”

“Your presence. If he forgets you tomorrow, you would not know if it was because he said your name, or because our little experiment with your name failed. We did try to introduce you as not Zero today. Now we might have to try again the next day.”

Zero looked down. Alia was right.

“Have you tried this with him when I was...away?” Zero sat at his personal computer desk.

“Yes, long ago. Early after he’s back, he was more confused than now. His memories were...unstable.”

“How did he react?”

“He remembered taking the math quizzes for a few days before he forgets it.” Zero heard a few finger tapping noises “It was Lifesaver’s idea, by the way.” 

“Hm.” Zero grunted an acknowledgement, “What else did he do?”

“I don’t have all the details. I’m sorry, Zero. Lifesaver doesn’t share everything. He often reports to us that the data he gathered were inconclusive. You might have to ask him yourself if you really want that data.”

Zero leaned on his elbow, weighing his options. 

He decided that he still didn’t trust Lifesaver. 

“I’ll think about it.” He said.

“Right.” 

“Alia, another thing. I heard that you gave an interesting report to Signas…. regarding the Nightmare phenomena.”

Alia didn’t answer. 

“It might be better to talk to you in person. May I go see you later?”

“In R&D?”

“Yes.”

“Zero, I’m so sorry. I’m afraid that it’s not a good idea to have you be here with us in R&D. We’ll be working on his Falcon armor. We cannot risk him forgetting about it…”

“...I understand. Maybe later, then.”

\---

23.00

Zero had already sent the report back to Alia. He’s in his recharge capsule, looking at the ceiling. 

He wanted nothing more than to just go see X, make sure he’s fine. 

He looked through old message logs. There’s one with X. 

He dared not open the folder.

He wished he had asked X for renewed direct radio permission. He wished that it was a good idea to do so.

It was not a good idea. Not until he made sure X was stable enough.

He had a feeling that he would reach that point...eventually. 

He would not give up. 

Zero activated the capsule, his systems slowly shut down one by one.  
And finally, after a few days of not getting any real, continuous sleep, he got to finish his full defrac routine.

**Author's Note:**

> as promised. I have ranted a lot about this AU on twitter. Finally, i wrote it.  
> I don't know how to write, guys. 
> 
> I advertised this as romance comedy, but this turns out to be more serious than i wanted it to be.


End file.
